Electronic image pickup apparatus having parallel circuit board arrangement

ABSTRACT

This electronic image pickup apparatus converts a subject image formed by an image-taking optical system into an electrical signal. In order to realize miniaturization by efficiently arranging components in the apparatus, this apparatus includes a plurality of electrical boards which have respective component sides parallel to a principal plane of the apparatus body having a flat shape and which are arranged so as to be spaced apart at a predetermined interval from the principal plane of the body. A plurality of power supply batteries are arranged in the apparatus so that the axial direction of the plurality of power supply batteries are parallel to the component sides of these electrical boards in a space sandwiched by this plurality of electrical boards. A relay board is arranged in a space between a lens barrel which holds the image-taking optical system and the plurality of power supply batteries and connects the plurality of electrical boards.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of prior application Ser. No.09/271,531 filed Mar. 18, 1999 by Takashi INOUE entitled ELECTRONICIMAGE PICKUP APPARATUS, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,714,248 B1.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an electronic image pickup apparatus,and in particular, to an arrangement of internal components for theminiaturization of the electronic image pickup apparatus by efficientlyarranging an electrical board and a power supply battery.

2. Description of the Related Art

Recently, electronic image pickup apparatuses such as an electronicstill camera have become popular. A camera of this type is constructedso that the camera may record an image signal, image information, andthe like as outputted from an image pickup means such as a CCD.

In such an electronic image pickup apparatus, many electrical componentsare used. Among these electrical components, a large-sized electricalboard is used as compared with those used in a conventional camera usinga silver halide film.

In addition, it is common to use a plurality of dry battery cells as apower supply in a conventional electronic image pickup apparatus.Therefore, the space that these components occupy in the apparatusinevitably becomes large.

With respect to conventional electronic image pickup apparatuses,various apparatuses have been proposed, for example, the apparatusdisclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 8-186768, andhave been put into practical use. In the apparatus as disclosed above, abattery chamber is arranged inside a holding part provided in an endpart of the apparatus, a plurality of power supply batteries iscontained therein, and a plurality of electrical boards are arranged ata different location from the battery chamber so that the plurality ofelectrical boards may be positioned parallel to an internal surface inthe front side of the apparatus.

The size of an electrical board arranged inside an electronic imagepickup apparatus is a major factor in determining the exterior size ofthe apparatus itself.

According to the conventional means disclosed in Japanese UnexaminedPatent Publication No. 8-186768 and the like, a battery chamber isprovided in an end part of the apparatus. Hence, it is not possible toarrange a large-sized electrical board and the like near this batterychamber.

In addition, according to the means disclosed in the publication, eachmember of the image pickup system, such as a picture-taking lens and animager, is unitized and is arranged at a position independent from abody part of the electronic image pickup apparatus. Therefore, if thisarrangement is adopted, there arises a problem that the apparatusbecomes large-sized.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A first object of the present invention is to provide an electronicimage pickup apparatus that is actually miniaturized by efficientlyarranging the internal components of the electronic image pickupapparatus.

A second object of the present invention is to provide an electronicimage pickup apparatus that can be miniaturized without variousessential functions of the electronic image pickup apparatus beingimpaired. Approaches for achieving this object are to sufficientlysecure a space necessary for arranging components such as an electricalboard inside the electronic image pickup apparatus, and to efficientlyarrange a power supply battery inside a body of the apparatus withoutwastefulness.

Briefly, a first embodiment of the present invention provides anelectronic image pickup apparatus that converts a subject image formedby an image-taking optical system into an electrical signal by using animager. The apparatus comprises a plurality of electrical boards thathave respective component sides parallel to a principal plane of theapparatus body and which have a flat shape and are arranged so as to bespaced apart at predetermined intervals, a plurality of power supplybatteries arranged so that the axial direction of the plurality of powersupply batteries may be parallel to the component sides of theseelectrical boards in a space sandwiched by this plurality of electricalboards, and a relay board that is arranged in a space between a lensbarrel holding the image-taking optical system and the plurality ofpower supply batteries and connects the plurality of electrical boards.

In addition, a second embodiment of the present invention provides anelectronic image pickup apparatus constructed according to the firstembodiment of the electronic image pickup apparatus and furthercomprising a strobe flashing unit arranged on an upper surface of thebody, and a capacitor for strobe flashing arranged in a space under thestrobe flashing unit and between the lens barrel and an internal sidewall of the body.

Furthermore, a third embodiment of the present invention is anelectronic image pickup apparatus constructed according to the secondembodiment of the electronic image pickup apparatus, wherein the axialdirection of the capacitor for strobe flashing is approximately parallelto the component sides of the electrical boards.

A fourth embodiment of the present invention is constructed according tothe first embodiment of the electronic image pickup apparatus, whereinan electrical board arranged in the side of the apparatus which isplaced near a subject, relative to the remainder of the plurality ofelectrical boards, has a power supply circuit mounted thereto, andfurther has a notched part for avoiding interference with the lensbarrel.

A fifth embodiment of the present invention is constructed according tothe first embodiment of the electronic image pickup apparatus, furthercomprising a plurality of connecting terminals installed atpredetermined positions on the plurality of electrical boards andarranged so that some of the plurality of connecting terminals may beexposed to the exterior of the body, and an element for attaching atripod arranged in a space that is surrounded by the plurality ofconnecting terminals and forming part of a bottom part of the body.

A sixth embodiment of the present invention is constructed according tothe fifth embodiment of the electronic image pickup apparatus, wherein aconnecting terminal installed on the electrical board among theplurality of connecting terminals is a power input terminal forsupplying power from an external power supply.

The above and further objects and advantages of the present inventionwill appear more fully from the following detailed description.

The present invention can provide an electronic image pickup apparatusthat is miniaturized by efficiently arranging the internal components inthe electronic image pickup apparatus.

In addition, the present invention can sufficiently secure a spacenecessary for arranging components such as an electrical board insidethe electronic image pickup apparatus, and can efficiently arrange apower supply battery inside the body of the apparatus withoutwastefulness. Therefore, the present invention can provide an electronicimage pickup apparatus that can be miniaturized without variousessential functions of the electronic image pickup apparatus beingimpaired.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the construction of an electronicimage pickup apparatus according to an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 is a drawing showing an internal arrangement of the principalmembers as viewed from the front of the electronic image pickupapparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a drawing showing the internal arrangement of the principalmembers as viewed from the top of the electronic image pickup apparatusshown in FIG. 1; and

FIG. 4 is a drawing showing the internal arrangement of the principalmembers as viewed from the right side of the electronic image pickupapparatus shown in FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

First, various components provided inside an electronic image pickupapparatus of this embodiment will be described below.

The electronic image pickup apparatus 1 comprises: an imager 21 thatconverts a subject image formed by a picture-taking lens system 13 asshown in FIG. 1 into an electrical signal and is composed of, forexample, a CCD and the like; a picture-taking circuit 22 for performingpredetermined image processing (preprocessing) for an image signalconverted by the imager 21; an A/D converter 23 for converting the imagesignal (analog signal), outputted from the picture-taking circuit 22into a digital signal; memory 24 such as a buffer memory for temporarilyrecording image information converted into the digital signal; a D/Aconverter 25 for converting the digital signal recorded in the memory 24into an analog signal in an optimum state for displaying the image on apicture display unit, that is, an LCD monitor 17 that is a reflectiveliquid crystal display unit which is small and has low powerconsumption; an LCD driver 26 for performing drive control of the LCDmonitor 17; a compression/decompression circuit 27 that performscompression processing so as to make it possible to record the digitalimage signal recorded in the memory 24 onto a recording medium 11 suchas a memory card and performs decompression processing so as to restorethe image signal recorded on the recording medium 11 in a compressedstate to a signal in a form such that various types of image processingcan be performed; a memory card slot 6 which is a recording medium portcomposed of a mount port used for mounting the recording medium 11, acard I/F (an electrical circuit), and the like; a serial connectingterminal 8 for mounting connection means such as a connection cable forelectrically connecting the apparatus 1 to an external peripheral device(not shown) such as a personal computer; a serial interface (I/F) 28composed of an electrical circuit for connecting the serial connectingterminal 8 to the compression/decompression circuit 27 and the like; aD/A converter 29 for converting the digital image signal recorded in thememory 24 into an analog signal in an optimum state for performingprocessing in an external piece of equipment (not shown) which canprocess a video signal and the like, such as a TV monitor; a videoconnecting terminal 7 for mounting connection means such as a connectioncable for electrically connecting the apparatus 1 to the externalequipment; a video interface (I/F) 30 composed of an electrical circuitfor connecting the video connecting terminal 7 to the D/A converter 29and the like; an external power input terminal 9 for supplying powerfrom an external power supply; a power supply battery 18 such as aplurality of dry cells to be contained inside the apparatus 1; aswitching circuit 32 of power supply routes that performs switchingbetween two lines of the power supply means, that is, the power supplybattery 18 and the external power input terminal 9; a DC/DC converter 33for converting a power supply voltage supplied thereto; a mode LCD 35that is a display means for displaying an operation mode of theapparatus 1 and the settings of different functions so as to make itpossible to visually identify the mode and settings; a strobe unit 37that is an auxiliary light source and is composed of a strobe flashingunit 15, a capacitor 16 for strobe flashing, a strobe circuit 31, andthe like; respective members such as operating switches 36 composed of aplurality of input switches for inputting various input signals to theapparatus 1, and the like; and a system controller 34 that is a controlmeans for controlling the entire apparatus 1.

In addition, the electrical members among the above-described membersare mounted on a plurality of electrical boards which will be describedlater, and are arranged at predetermined positions inside the apparatus1.

Furthermore, the above-described operating switches 36 are a pluralityof input switches provided for specifying various functions to thecontrol means such as the system controller 34, and for operating andcontrolling the electronic image pickup apparatus 1 by commandingvarious operations. The operating switches 36 are formed as, forexample, a release SW for giving a command for executing image pickupoperation, a mode transfer SW for giving a command for switching anoperation mode, and the like.

In a conventional electronic image pickup apparatus, it is common toprovide a liquid crystal display unit with a back light as the picturedisplay unit. However, this liquid crystal display unit with the backlight has problems in that the unit is thick in the depth direction andpower consumption thereof is large.

In the electronic image pickup apparatus 1 of this embodiment, asdescribed above, a reflective liquid crystal display unit is used as thepicture display unit (LCD monitor 17). Since this reflective liquidcrystal display unit is constructed so that an image can be displayedusing outdoor daylight, a back light is not necessary. In addition, itis possible to miniaturize the apparatus and to easily reduce powerconsumption. Therefore, in the electronic image pickup apparatus 1 ofthis embodiment, the reflective liquid crystal display unit contributesto further thinning and energy-saving of the apparatus when it is usedas the LCD monitor 17.

The arrangement of various components inside the electronic image pickupapparatus 1 constructed in this manner is described below.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, a body of this electronic image pickupapparatus 1 is formed in a nearly flat shape having principal planes inwhich a front side and a back side thereof have comparatively largeareas.

A picture-taking lens barrel 12 holding a picture-taking lens system 13is provided at a predetermined position that is a little to the rightfrom the central vicinity of the front side as viewed from the front ofthe electronic image pickup apparatus 1. An imager 21 is provided behindthis picture-taking lens barrel 12 which has its image pickup planetrained toward the front (not shown in FIGS. 2 to 4). Due to thisarrangement, a subject image condensed by the picture-taking lens system13 is imaged on the image pickup plane of the imager 21. In addition,for example, a lens system composed of a single focus lens system havinga single focal distance is used as the picture-taking lens system 13.

A finder optical system 14 for observing the subject image anddetermining an image pickup range and the like at the time of an imagepickup operation by the apparatus 1 is provided inside the body on theupper side thereof near the picture-taking lens barrel 12. This finderoptical system 14 is an optical system composed of object and ocularlenses, a prism, and the like, and is formed with an optical systemdifferent from the picture-taking lens system 13. Therefore, so as toreduce discrepancy between an observation range of an image includingthe subject image by the finder optical system 14 and an image pickuprange of an image to be actually picked up by the picture-taking lenssystem 13, that is, parallax, the finder optical system 14 is arrangednear the picture-taking lens barrel 12.

In addition, the LCD monitor 17 can reproduce and display image datarecorded on the recording medium 11 after image pickup by the apparatus1 as an image, and is arranged substantially at the center of the backside of the body of the apparatus 1 with its image display screenlocated on the back side so as to be parallel to the principal plane ofthe body of the apparatus 1. This LCD monitor 17 can reproduce anddisplay the image data recorded as an image at the time of a reproducingoperation, and further has a role as a finder for observing the subjectimage similarly to the finder optical system 14 and determining an imagepickup range and the like. A plurality of operating switches (not shown)for commanding functions at the time of using the LCD monitor 17 areprovided in the vicinity of the LCD monitor 17.

Inside the body of the apparatus 1, two large electrical boards, thatis, a front electrical board 2 and a rear electrical board 3 arearranged in parallel to each other while being spaced apart at apredetermined interval so as to be parallel to the principal plane ofthe body. Both electrical boards 2 and 3 are electrically connected toeach other by a relay board 4 through connectors 19 a and 19 b (FIG. 3)mounted at predetermined positions on the respective boards.

The electrical board 2 has a shape which avoids the picture-taking lensbarrel 12. Thus, the electrical board 2 is formed with a notch formaking it possible to avoid interference with the picture-taking lensbarrel 12. FIG. 2 shows the electrical board 2 with a partially brokenaway portion for showing a power supply battery 18 which will bedescribed later.

Here, a plurality of electrical parts at both the left and right sidesas viewed from the front of the electronic image pickup apparatus 1 canbe provided in an arrangement which sandwiches the picture-taking lensbarrel 12. For example, two electrical boards arranged on both the leftand right sides of the picture-taking lens barrel 12, and a connectingmember and the like such as a harness for transferring electricalsignals is provided between these two electrical boards.

In the electronic image pickup apparatus of this embodiment, theelectrical board 2 is formed having the shape described above, that is,a shape for avoiding the picture-taking lens barrel 12. In analternative arrangement, it is possible to omit the connecting membersuch as the harness in a case in which two electrical boards arearranged at both the left and right sides of the picture-taking lensbarrel 12. Hence, in this embodiment, it is possible to more efficientlyuse an inside space of the apparatus 1.

In addition, components such as memory card slot 6 including a card I/Fand the like, a strobe circuit 31, a switching circuit 32 of the powersupply routes, and a DC/DC converter 33 are mounted on the frontelectrical board 2 (not shown in FIGS. 2 to 4; refer to FIG. 1).Furthermore, an external power input terminal 9 is provided at apredetermined position that is near the bottom of a right side surfaceas viewed from the front of the body. A terminal portion of thisexternal power input terminal 9 is provided so as to be exposed to theexterior of the apparatus on the right side of the body of the apparatus1. Hence, a power cable for supplying power from an external source canbe connected to this terminal port.

In addition, for example, the picture-taking circuit 22, systemcontroller 34, LCD driver 26, video I/F 30, serial I/F 28, and the likeare mounted on the rear electrical board 3 (not shown in FIGS. 2 to 4;refer to FIG. 1). Furthermore, the video connecting terminal 7 andserial connecting terminal 8 are provided at predetermined positionsthat are on the right side near the bottom surface as viewed from thefront of the body. Terminal portions of these connecting terminals 7 and8, similarly to the external power input terminal 9, are provided so asto be exposed to the exterior of the apparatus on the right side of thebody of the apparatus 1. Hence, connection cables for connecting theapparatus 1 to predetermined external equipment can be connected tothese terminal ports.

A screw hole 10 that is a member for attaching a tripod is provided in aspace that is surrounded by the front and rear electrical boards 2 and3, and near the external power input terminal 9, video connectingterminal 7, and serial connecting terminal 8, and is part of a bottomside of the body of the apparatus 1.

Usually, it is common to use the screw hole 10 to attach a tripod when apicture-taking operation is performed with the electronic image pickupapparatus 1 and the like mounted on the tripod. When mounted on thetripod, the electronic image pickup apparatus 1 is supported only by amember (a part of the exterior member on the bottom side) near the screwhole 10 for attaching the tripod, and hence the load is concentrated onthis part.

In addition, the load generated when the power cables or connectingcables are attached or detached also concentrates on an exterior memberin the vicinity of the video connecting terminal 7 and serial connectingterminal 8 for performing connection to external equipment, and of theexternal power input terminal 9 for supplying power from an externalpower supply.

In a regular apparatus similar to the apparatus 1, it is known to formthe exterior member near the screw hole 10 for attaching a tripod, theexternal power input terminal 9, the video connecting terminal 7, theserial connecting terminal 8, and the like so that the exterior memberhas a higher strength than other parts of the apparatus.

In the electronic image pickup apparatus of this embodiment, members towhich external forces are more likely to be applied, that is, the screwhole 10 for attaching a tripod, the external power input terminal 9, thevideo connecting terminal 7, the serial connecting terminal 8, and thelike are arranged so as to be concentrated together in one area of theapparatus, as seen in FIG. 4. At the same time, the exterior member isformed to have a higher strength than other parts.

On the other hand, the strobe unit 37 (FIG. 1) in the apparatus 1 isarranged at a predetermined position inside the body to the right asviewed from the front. A strobe unit is provided in which the strobeflashing unit 15 can freely pop up from and pop back down into the body,that is, a so-called popup type strobe unit 37. When the strobe unit 37becomes necessary at the time of picture-taking, the strobe flashingunit 15 interlocks with a power-on operation of the main power SW andthe like, and pops up on the upper side of the body. In addition, theunit is arranged so that, in the popup state (the state shown in FIGS. 2and 4), a flashing surface of the strobe flashing unit 15 faces thefront of the apparatus.

Furthermore, a capacitor 16 for strobe flashing has a nearly cylindricalshape and is arranged in a space under the strobe flashing unit 15 thatis, a space between the front and rear electrical boards 2 and 3, and aspace between the lens barrel 12 and an internal right side wall of thebody so that the axial direction of the capacitor 16 may be parallel tothe component sides of both of the electrical boards 2 and 3 and may beperpendicular to the bottom surface of the body.

On the other hand, a battery chamber for containing a plurality of powersupply batteries 18 is provided at a predetermined position to the leftas viewed from the front of the apparatus 1, and in a space between thefront and rear electrical boards 2 and 3 so that the axial direction ofthe plurality of power supply batteries may be parallel to the componentsides of both of the electrical boards 2 and 3. Inside this batterychamber, four dry cells having substantially cylindrical shapes can becontained in a row without overlapping each other. Furthermore, thebattery chamber is formed so that the axial direction of the pluralityof power supply batteries 18 to be contained inside the battery chambermay be substantially perpendicular to the bottom surface of the body ofthe apparatus 1.

Moreover, an opening (not shown) for making it possible to insert orremove the power supply batteries 18 contained in the battery chamber isprovided in the bottom part of the body. A battery chamber lid (notshown) for opening and closing this opening is rotatably provided in anexterior member on the bottom side of the body.

In addition, a relay board 4 is arranged in a space between the powersupply batteries 18 and lens barrel 12 and connected through theconnectors 19 a and 19 b to both the electrical boards 2 and 3.

Furthermore, an insertion opening for making it possible to insert andremove the recording medium 11 such as a memory card, is provided at apredetermined position toward the front on the left side as viewed fromthe front of the apparatus 1. The memory card slot 6 and this openingcommunicate with each other inside the body.

Moreover, an operation board 5 is provided at a predetermined positiontoward the upper surface of the apparatus 1. For example, contacts ofthe operating switches 36, the mode LCD 35, a microcomputer (not shown)for controlling circuits in an operation system, and the like aremounted on this operation board 5.

In addition, in FIGS. 2 to 4, a lens protection member, not shown andwhich covers the front side of the picture-taking lens system 13 whenthe electronic image pickup apparatus is in a non-picture-taking state,for example, a state of non-use of reproduction, is provided so as to beslidable in the direction parallel to the principal plane at the frontside of the body, that is, the width direction of the body of theelectronic image pickup apparatus 1.

Usually, the external power input terminal 9, the video connectingterminal 7, the serial connecting terminal 8, and the like providedtoward the bottom surface at the right side of the body are not used innormal picture-taking. Therefore, a protective lid member (not shown)covering the external power input terminal 9, the video connectingterminal 7, the serial connecting terminal 8, and the like, so as toprevent dust and dirt from entering into these terminals to the insideof the apparatus 1 is provided so as to be rotatable on an exteriormember of the body.

As described above, according to the above-described embodiment, twolarge electrical boards, that is, the front and rear electrical boards 2and 3 are provided so that the electrical boards 2 and 3 are parallel tothe principal plane of the body of the apparatus, and large componentssuch as the power supply battery 18, and capacitor 16 for strobeflashing are efficiently arranged in a space between the electricalboards 2 and 3. Hence, it is possible to realize miniaturization of theelectronic image pickup apparatus 1 by securing the necessary areasoccupied by electric boards.

In addition, the screw hole 10 for attaching a tripod is arranged byeffectively using a space for providing the plurality of connectingterminals, that is, the external power input terminal 9, the videoconnecting terminal 7, the serial connecting terminal 8, and the like.Therefore, it is possible to realize the miniaturization of theelectronic image pickup apparatus 1. Furthermore, by arranging thecomponents on which forces concentrate in the same area, it becomes easyto secure a predetermined strength, and it is possible to simplify theproduction process steps of the exterior members of the body. Hence, itis possible to contribute to the reduction of production costs of theapparatus.

Furthermore, in the electronic image pickup apparatus 1, a detachablemedium such as a memory card is used as the recording medium 11. Toaccommodate the recording medium, the memory card slot 6 is provided inthe body of the apparatus 1.

In one alternative construction of the invention, for example, it isconceivable that a memory fixed in the inside of the body of theelectronic image pickup apparatus 1 is used as the recording medium 11.In this case, since the memory card slot 6 including the card I/Fbecomes unnecessary, the fixed memory and the like can be mounted on acomponent side of the front electrical board 2 at the location otherwiseoccupied by the slot 6. With this embodiment, it is possible to obtainthe same effects as those in the above-described embodiment.

It is apparent that a wide range of different working modes can beformed on the basis of the present disclosure without departing from thespirit and scope of the present invention. The present invention istherefore not restricted by any specific embodiment except being limitedby the appended claims.

1. An electronic image pickup apparatus that converts a subject imageimaged by an image-taking optical system into an electrical signal usingan imager provided behind a picture-taking lens barrel, comprising: agenerally flattened, apparatus body having a principal body plane thatis associated with and generally aligned with a front side of theapparatus; first and second electrical boards having respectivecomponent sides oriented substantially parallel to the principal bodyplane of the apparatus, the first and second electrical boards beingspaced apart at a predetermined interval to create a space; the lensbarrel extending generally perpendicularly to the principal body plane;a plurality of power supply batteries arranged in the space between theelectrical boards so that an axial direction of the plurality of powersupply batteries is parallel to the component sides of the electricalboards and the batteries extend in a row without overlapping one anotherand are situated on a first side of the apparatus body; a relay boardarranged in the space and connecting the electrical boards; a strobeflashing unit arranged on an upper surface of the apparatus body; and acapacitor for strobe flashing situated on the second side of theapparatus body which is opposite the first side of the apparatus bodyand arranged in a space under the strobe flashing unit and between thelens barrel and an internal side wall of the apparatus body, wherein anaxial direction of the capacitor is substantially parallel to thecomponent sides of the electrical boards and substantially perpendicularto a bottom part of the apparatus body.
 2. An electronic image pickupapparatus according to claim 1, wherein an axial direction of theplurality of power supply batteries is parallel to the axial directionof the capacitor for strobe flashing.
 3. An electronic image pickupapparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a plurality ofconnecting terminals installed at predetermined positions on theelectrical boards and arranged so that a part of each of the pluralityof connecting terminals is exposed to the exterior of the apparatusthrough a side of the apparatus body; and a member for attachment of atripod that is arranged in a space surrounded by the plurality ofconnecting terminals and located on the bottom surface of the apparatusbody.
 4. An electronic image pickup apparatus according to claim 1,wherein the location of the relay board is bounded by the electricalboards, the lens barrel, and the power supply batteries.
 5. Anelectronic image pickup apparatus according to claim 1, furthercomprising an image memory board having a main body plane that extendssubstantially parallel to the principal body plane of the apparatus, thememory board being positioned in a space between the front side of theapparatus and the electrical boards.
 6. An electronic image pickupapparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a battery chamber inwhich the plurality of batteries are located and a battery chamber lidprovided at the bottom surface of the apparatus body.
 7. An electronicimage pickup apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising areflective liquid crystal display unit disposed at a rear side of thebody of the apparatus.